Tegan and Sara – Sainthood

First, to clarify, my daughter’s name is spelled differently. T-E-A-G-A-N. That fact alone made this post difficult to write. Okay?

So with Sainthood the Quin sisters have followed up their wildly (and for me oddly) enjoyable 2007 album The Con (which followed the enjoyable 2004 album So Jealous) with something altogether much darker and heavier, both lyrically and musically. The album is overproduced in the same way that a Britney Spears album would be if it was made to top some imaginary indie rock charts, as in, it really isn’t, despite being so. Sainthood is a bit of a departure as it features as many keys and synths as it does guitars (if not more). Chris Walla (of Death Cab For Cutie) produces and does a masterful job. Every electronic flourish, every acoustic guitar, every synth line, and every bass dropout are perfectly placed and executed in a way that’s always interesting. Production and arrangements aside, though, Tegan and Sara have written their best and most cohesive group of songs yet. Sure, there were amazing songs on their previous albums, but these songs are great together. They are biting and seething with a post-punk edge but also goddamn infectious.

Really, I know that I shouldn’t like Tegan And Sara and Sainthood as much as I do, but their vocals (which can be off-putting and screechy) and melodies are just so good. Every song seems to burst into it’s chorus and then BAM!, I’m hooked. Really, the truth of the matter is that I’m old, I’m jaded, and I hate the vast majority of pop music, but Sainthood is really fucking great. There, I said it.